Anderson, the world No 7, won 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 to claim his fifth straight win over the Italian journeyman, who is ranked 74th on the ATP rankings.

In his next match, Anderson will face either Pablo Cuevas from Uruguay or Aljaz Bedene from Slovenia.

The 2.03m South African, who is seeded sixth at the French Open, is drawn in the same half as world No 1 Rafael Nadal , with the duo scheduled to meet in the quarter-finals.

Anderson’s best performance at the French Open is reaching the fourth round on three occasions – in 2013, 2014 and 2017.

Meanwhile, South Africa’s top doubles player, Raven Klaasen , also got off to a winning start at the French Open when he and New Zealand partner Michael Venus won their first round match against the French wildcard duo of Alexandre Muller and Corentin Denolly, 6-3, 6-3. DM